Rendered Speculation: Injecting excitement into Toyota with a Prius Coupe

Rumors of a Prius coupe from Toyota have been floating around for at least a couple of years – to no avail. However, now that new Toyota CEO Akio Toyoda has decreed that Toyota needs some excitement in its lineup, and Honda has announced that the production CR-Z coupe will debut this fall, a real Prius coupe may finally gain some momentum. A new rendering that has popped in Japan shows a hybrid coupe with more resemblance to the new Hyundai Genesis coupe than any current Toyota.

If the Prius coupe does become reality, it could get a more powerful version of the powertrain from the current 5-door hatchback, possibly with as much as 134 hp from the 1.8-liter engine. It's also possible that Toyota could just drop in the powertrain from the Lexus HS250h, which uses a 2.4-liter engine based on the Camry. There's no word on whether the coupe will come stateside although if the CR-Z succeeds, it seems a good bet.

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